CHEHALIS, Wash. — A plan announced in April that would have seen the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad operate steam excursions on the tracks of the Chehalis-Centralia Railroad & Museum “is not going to be executed this year,” the Chehalis-Centralia Chronicle reports.
Instead, the Mt. Rainier Scenic now says it will offer limited steam excursions on its own route beginning Sept. 1.
The newspaper quotes minutes of a July meeting of the Chehalis-Central board, which said the idea was being put on hold. Board president Mary Kay Nelson said in a statement to the newspaper that her organization “has not given up hope and continues to explore other options,” and that work continues on deferred maintenance on track and bridges.
The two organizations offered contrasting views on what happened to the Chehalis plans. The Chehalis-Centralia meeting minutes indicate Mt. Rainier Executive Director Bethan Miller said Miller’s organization was concentrating its resources on a RailCycle project at Mt. Rainier’s location in Elbe, Wash. A Mt. Rainier representative said in a written statement to the newspaper that “the CCRM board voted to put the partnership on hold as they work through their own challenges and funding concerns.”
That same statement says a “generous donation” will allow Mt. Rainier to perform track and bridge repairs and begin a limited steam excursion schedule. Tickets for steam trips Sept. 1-Oct. 29 are now on sale on the Mt. Rainier website.
Mt. Rainer Scenic said in April it was finalizing negotiations to bring its steam engine, 1922 Baldwin 2-8-2 Polson No. 70, and several passenger cars to Chehalis for the excursions [see “Mt. Rainier Scenic plans excursions in Chehalis, Wash. …,” Trains News Wire, April 27, 2023].
Mt. Rainier Scenic, which has been shut down since 2020, is restoring its own tracks to operating condition and originally expected to resume operation no sooner than 2024 [see “Mt. Rainier Scenic to return in 2024 or 2025,” News Wire, Sept. 19, 2022], while the Chehalis-Central operation has been sidelined because of an inability to obtain operating liability insurance [see “Accident losses led to end of insurance …,” News Wire, March 10, 2023]. It has regained some insurance, allowing stationary events and work on the property.
The 2-8-2 No. 70 was built by Baldwin Locomotive Works for Polson Brothers Logging Company of Hoquiam, Washington in 1922; bought by Rayonier Corp. in 1945. It was retired and purchased from Rayonier by Maynard Lang in 1963, operated in Snoqualmie for the Puget Sound Railway Historical Association from 1966 until it was rendered inoperable in 1983. It was sold to MRSR in 1992 after Lang’s death. It was restored to operable condition in 2011. It was put out of service due to lead truck issues, returned to service in 2017; it is currently operable.
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In May 2020, American Heritage Railways announced that the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad or MRSR would cease operations “for the foreseeable future” due to financial losses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The last Polar Express train ran from November to December 2019. On September 15, 2022, it was announced that the railroad would resume operations by 2025, including the restoration of track to Eatonville that will add 9 miles to the railroad. Happily, on August 1, 2023; the MRSR announced a resumption of service to begin in the fall season. And that’s great news!
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